


For Her

by yosjiefo



Category: Miss Detective's Undercover (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Pining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-31
Updated: 2017-07-31
Packaged: 2018-12-09 10:34:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11667363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yosjiefo/pseuds/yosjiefo
Summary: [ End-game Spoilers ]There were two important dates: the day the two had opened up the office together and the day Mystic Thief X came into existence.





	For Her

**Author's Note:**

> Kind of a retelling with a different focus character, kind of an expansion. Spoiler-warning still applies for the ending of the game and Mystic Thief X's route.

Martin could remember the first days where the two of them had opened the office. Every minuscule detail was etched into his mind, a note to remember amongst millions of other things ( more important things, his head would remind him, but his heart would argue differently ) but kept fondly because that day was special for her…

...and thus it was special for him too.

Had he ever seen such radiant passion in his life? The girl at just twelve was already entering the working field and was fast pursuing her dream. There was no one with more conviction than she, he had convinced himself, watching her stay up with a frenzied giddiness late into the night because the euphoria kept her from sleeping.

And so he had stayed awake too, albeit in his own little room off to the side. It was a small office space, but it was workable— oh, who was he kidding? It was workable for no sane man, and the lack of proper space was not compensated in the paychecks either. Yet, he had known about it when he had accepted this job as a detective’s assistant— _her_ assistant.

He would find himself a fool had he passed up the opportunity to not be by her side.

It was love at first sight, an idea he had fancied plenty in his childhood stories yet never felt the extreme delight until the face framed and crowned with bouncy brunette locks had appeared before him. She had a ditziness to her, one that caused her lips to be looser ( something he would scold her on especially with her line of work ) and spill forth just about any thought she may have in its least inhibited state, but the sparkle in her eye as she recalled her forensic training, talked of the future with a glimmering hope, and directed at him in a sort of gratitude for coming on board with her as every famous sleuth has an endearing sidekick at their hip— it all made his heart _flutter_ . And when she smiled, his heart absolutely _soared_.

The first few weeks were akin to a honeymoon period, but then the following months had proved to be trials and tribulations for his resolve.

Cases weren’t filing in, and even if they were, it either wasn’t enough to bring in money and fame or it was just out of her league at the time. He watched her grow crestfallen. One’s optimism could only go so far, he knew.

“Miss.”

“You can go on now back to the office, Martin. I’ll… just stick around out here.”

“You’ll get frostbite if you just stand out here forever,” he chastised her. It was winter, and the area had been gaining more snow than usual.

“Ugh, killjoy.”

“I can hear you, you know.”

Caught off guard a bit, her eyes had grown wide before she recovered. “Well, that’s what you are!" 

He sighed. “I’m just worried for you.”

“Well, maybe I’M worried about you.”

His heart skipped a beat. He took a moment to gather his senses, all before he had read too much into the younger’s words and twisted them into something he had hoped was true even if he was well aware his Miss was the type of girl to not care much for romance. She could be a romantic if only one assumed her partner was her dreams of being a detective, and he was a shoddy man who could never hold a light to that.

“Look! Your face is all red,” she teased. “You’re the one who can’t stand this weather, not me!”

A smug grin and a glint in her eyes made it painfully obvious that she was, once again, being ignorant of his feelings but also fully confident in her deduction. His expression fell as he narrowed his gaze upon her.

“Perhaps that’s not the reason…?”

“Hm? AH, did you paint your cheeks today?!”

Ah… that was his employer alright. Too oblivious for her own good, but then again she was still rather young. Hitting adolescence did not mean everyone’s heart was fixated on fancy and whatnot, even if _his_ was.

“Well, I’ll be heading back now. If you’re not back in an hour, I’ll come looking for you.”

“You worry too much, Martin! Geez, you’re not my _mother_.”

“At least… have your wits about you, Miss. You still have that pepper spray I gave you, right?”

He watches as she scrambles and fumbles to find it on her person. It’s a miracle, really, considering how there’s not too many places to hide it, and each second spent watching her hands move without success is another minute chopped off the end of his own lifespan. His heart’s beating resounding in his ears are not of the brief infatuation byproduct but rather now anxiety threatening to take him over.

“...Ta-dah~! See? I have it right here!”

She thrust the bottle forward with a proud grin to show him, and only after a moment he exhaled a sigh of relief.

“Don’t scare me like that.”

“Wh-? Why would you be scared?” she lowered her hand a bit, her eyes lost before an epiphany struck her and her face was glowing again. “Oh! Did you think I was going to spray you?” Mischief marked her features as she inched closer, arm raised and ready.

He stepped back, hands raised defensively. “Alright, alright, I’ll be off.”

Though he really didn’t want to leave her on her own, he could see this was his cue to leave. There was nothing else to fuss over, and he was certain she very well might threaten to spray him with his own gift had he overstayed his welcome.

When he returned to their office, he took off his winter coat and hung it on the coat rack by the entrance. Wet boots stayed underneath on the ground and up against the wall. With those two articles off of him, everything felt considerably lighter though noticeably colder. The office wasn’t very well-heated: an unlicensed detective did not gain nearly enough pay for more than just rent. At least, he assumed as much with how little his job offered him and how he worked under her.

When the detective returned, he had approached her but she swiftly avoided him, her steps steering her to her bedroom with a purpose in them. Her usual vitality in her face was gone, and he had assumed naturally that the time spent outside was meant to calm her yet…

...the expression upon her visage struck him where he stood. It took him a few moments to get over his stunned status before he followed behind her trail and stood in front of her door, the wood being all that separated the two.

“Miss…?”

A muffled phrase came from the other side.

“Excuse me?”

“I said ‘Don’t talk to me, Martin!’” 

He stepped back a bit, reeling. Her voice was weak and hoarse, though she forced herself to shout so that he might hear her. His gaze turned downcast. Silence followed them for a small while after before he finally said, “Alright. Good night, Miss. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He wavered in front of her door but no reply ever came. He was uncertain how long he stayed there, whether or not she knew he had remained there far longer after his reply, nor how long he was even allowed to just loiter in good conscience before he eventually turned to his own room with heavy steps.

He had little doubt what was causing her to be upset. The steady decline of the office paired along with how she had to provide for the both of them monetarily meant that soon enough, the two of them would be done with the business altogether. Luck had not been kind to them, and she would have to face the harsh reality of packing up and going home.

But he knew more than anyone else just how much this job meant to her.

There was no other girl— no, no other _person_ could surpass the wonder in her voice and eyes, could captivate him so with their passion. He could not let the light within her be extinguished no matter what.

Though how?  



End file.
